Car and Driver just had to send their 2024 BMW i4 to the body shop after hitting a deer. Here’s the view of the damage from the outside, doesn’t look too bad right?
Turns out the repair cost estimate is $17,000…wow…
2024 BMW i4 xDrive40 10,000-Mile Update: Oh, Deer! (caranddriver.com)
That’s why your car insurance premium has gone up 48% in the last 3 yrs.
Any estimate/final bill should never be 50% more.
My 2015 civic estimate was $2800. Final bill was $4400.
I believe every dollar of that estimate. No body shop is going to fix a $1200 radar sensor. Those cool laser headlights are more expensive than an old sealed beam and bracket.
Imagine a T bone hit on an EV. It may be totaled just because battery damage might have occurred and the car is worth less than a new battery.
Customers expect to be made whole. And who does that? Your insurance company does. Cha Ching $$$
I wonder what the cost for a similar repair would have been for a 430i Xdrive Gran Coupe with similar equipment? My guess is the price would be similar since the EV-specific hardware does that seem to have been affected. Still, a aw dropping cost. I test drove an i4 and it’s a terrific car. I’m glad I didn’t buy it though. Hardly a week goes by when I don’t see dead deer on the side of the road.
Agree with that. This isn’t an EV specific crash… but it is a highly technical BMW with expensive bits crash. An ICE BMW would have had these parts, too.
I’m sure the 2024 Hood and Fascia/bumper cover are not cheap being that new, as well… And the paint alone can get stupid in price depending…
I didn’t read everything, but I would think all the work was done by the BMW dealer body shop as well…
Nothing unusual about BMW prices. 6 months ago, I wrote an estimate for 2 headlights for a 2019 Lexus ES 350: $3500 each. Hood is $1000, radar sensor is $650.
And some of those danged headlamps, if you push a little to hard installing a new bulb you can break them, Audi something (don’t remember it’s year or model) back around 2016 and it cost us over $600 back then, and we know how much tech has advanced in the last 10 years not to mention prices… Yeah the price doesn’t surprise me any… Especially after seeing the Ford F- tail lights costing $5000… lol
A Bentley Continental tail light for $2765 doesn’t seem as bad as it did a few minutes ago.
On the + side, $1000 for a new hood seems pretty reasonable.
What do they mean by “laser headlights”?
Here’s the explanation I’ve found for the Laser headlights
Laserlight headlights do not directly project light the road as one may think, given the name. Instead, the headlight housing directs three monochromatic blue laser light beams through a series of mirrors within the headlight assembly. Next, the light is directed towards a lens filled with yellow phosphorus. The blue laser light reacts to the yellow phosphorus filled lens and generates an immensely bright white light directed out of the headlight. See the image below for a cutout of this setup to get a better idea of how this technology works.
The light generated by the laser beam through the phosphorus lens is up to 10 times brighter than the light generated by LED headlights. The components for laser technology is very compact allowing for the overall size of the housing to be small, this allows for an increase in vehicle aerodynamics.
Increasing road visibility through laser technology improves driver safety. An integrated infrared camera system works in conjunction with the Laserlight system to provide the following benefits. The camera system can detect oncoming traffic and automatically dim the headlights, hands-free, with no driver input. If the camera system detects obstacles in the road such as an animal or obstruction, the headlights can focus the beam directly on the object up to 300 feet away.
BMW recognizes that since Laserlight technology is substantially bright, it may be a distraction in an urban environment. Because of this, the Laserlight technology is only allowed at speeds above 37mph.
How BMW Laserlight headlights work, benefits. - BIMMERtips.com
How much would these repairs cost on, say, a 1998 Toyota Camry, or a 1999 Dodge Caravan, or a 2000 Ford Focus? And don’t tell me that the car would simply be totaled, because if the owner was not claiming through insurance, it would still be their choice. I am guessing that even with a new aftermarket hood, new aftermarket halogen headlamp assemblies, new aftermarket front grille, new aftermarket bumper cover, etc, and paint/body work would be under $4k.
Depends on what the paint and body work costs but you’ve left some room after the parts to be under that amount. Assuming nothing’s damaged underneath those panels.
For $4K, I could BUY a nicer car than a 1998 Toyota Camry, 1999 Dodge Caravan or a 2000 Ford Focus
Look for a 99 Ford Panther vehicle with a push bar in front and cargo tray on back.
What for ?
Let’s say I’m the one that hit your car and did that damage, You’re going to have to go through my insurance company because I’m not going to give you a dime, I have accident forgiveness so it won’t increase my rates.
My guess push bar would indicate previous law enforcement vehicle. In my area, those X-LEOs are purchased by taxi companies then driven another 100,000 miles.
Hmm, how long will taxis continue to exist? Seems Uber and Lyft are taking a lot of the business.
Protects both front and back of car. Seen them on pickup trucks and sports utility vehicles as well. Nothing rides like a Panther!
Good , give me a vehicle that handles and does not wallow all over the road.
